New York City has held a Celebrate Israel Day parade for many decades. In 2024, just months after the worst attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust, the gathering of Jews and Israel-supporters had a very different feeling.

Among the many marchers were several elderly people who survived the European Holocaust 80 years ago. Some joined a float sponsored by the Claims Conference, the organization that secures funding from European countries, principally Germany, and distributes it to help the elderly victims.

The survivors and Claims Conference supporters wore shirts that read “cancel hate” on the front, while the backs read “never again,” particularly meaningful slogans for people who had survived violent trauma as children and were living through a period of antisemitic slaughter and vulgar hatred again in their old age.

Alas, “never again” proved a hollow slogan. On October 7, vicious Palestinian Arab antisemites invaded Israel and butchered 1,200 civilians in their homes and at a peaceful dance rave. In the tragedy’s immediate aftermath, people in many cities – including New York City – chanted that they were thrilled at the burning of Jewish families. Once again.

Eight months later, Holocaust survivors rode up Fifth Avenue holding Israeli flags, as New York City Police sharpshooters watched from atop buildings, and drones and helicopters circled overhead, worried that anti-Israel protestors would attack the celebration.

Only half of Fifth Avenue held onlookers, as the police did not want infiltrators coming in from Central Park, which packed viewers against the buildings. Many wore stickers and held placards to finish Hamas, the ruling Palestinian entity of Gaza which carried out the vicious massacre and has sworn to destroy the Jewish State.

The survivors were born in various countries including Poland and Russia. They were mostly women, as male survivors are becoming a rarity.

They waved flags. They danced with young Jews.

They cried at the situation that they were living in a world where “never again” were empty words, even as they clasped Israeli flags and tried to remain hopeful that now Jews have autonomy in the State of Israel which was lacking during World War II.

The reality is that they had fled many years ago to America and internalized that this “goldene medina” was unique and offered Jews protection and opportunity absent in Europe.

Now, their smiles and optimism felt shallow.

The crowd very much echoed those feelings. Yellow ribbons, pins and stickers calling to bring home the 125 remaining hostages held by Palestinian Arabs, were close to everyone’s hearts and minds.

In the end, the Holocaust survivors didn’t confront any Jew haters in the crowd as they rode the float in the Israel celebration. They and the crowd which included many with family members impacted by the October 7 Massacre as well as the War on Terror, thought about the words that accompanied them on the journey from Matisyahu’s One Day song:

All my life, I’ve been waitin’ for (waitin’ for)
I’ve been prayin’ for (prayin’ for), for the people to say
That we don’t wanna fight no more (fight no more)
There’ll be no more wars (no more wars), and our children will play

One day (one day), one day (one day)
One day (oh, oh, oh, oh-oh-oh, one day)
One day (one day), one day (one day)
One day (oh-oh-oh)

One day, this all will change, treat people the same
Stop with the violence, down with the hate
One day, we’ll all be free and proud to be
Under the same sun, singin’ songs of freedom like

Wah-yo (one day, one day), wah-yo, oh, oh (oh-oh-oh)
Wah-yo (one day, one day), wah-yo, oh, oh (oh-oh-oh)